A conventional swimming pool installation usually incorporates a recirculating system having a pump and a filter assembly located adjacent the pool for circulating and filtering the pool water. Typically included in this recirculating system is a skimming device adjacent the sidewall of the pool and a main drain located on the floor of the pool. Water from the pool is drawn through the skimming device and the main drain by the pump, and forced through the filter assembly before being returning to the pool through a discharge outlet. The skimmer device is configured to removes the film of material and floating objects from the surface of the water while the main drain is adapted to collect sediment which sinks to the bottom of the pool. A small filter basket is usually provided in the system before the pump to intercept debris picked up by the main drain or which has passed through the skimmer device.
In a properly maintained pool, the skimmer device will keep the surface of the pool clean, and remove large debris before it sinks. The skimmer device extends downwardly from an opening proximate to the deck, a removable strainer basket that captures the film of material and floating objects from the surface of the water, and a removable lid for closing the opening at the top of the skimmer device. The strainer basket can be emptied of the collected debris. This is accomplished by opening the lid, removing the strainer basket from the skimmer device through the opening, evacuating debris collected in the strainer basket, returning the strainer basket to the skimmer device through the opening, and closing the lid. Since the lid is located at the pool deck, removing the lid requires the user bend down to remove the lid, and then bend down even further to reach the strainer basket. For many pool owners this task is difficult, especially for the physically impaired.